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Indians Wrestle in Wray Invitational

Norris Wins 1st at 195

by Kent Kechter on December 19, 2016

The St. Francis Indian wrestling team traveled to Wray, Colorado, to participate in the Bob Smith Invitational Wrestling Tournament on Saturday, December 17. The Indians placed 8th in the tournament as a team and had four individuals place in their weight brackets. Four of the six wrestlers participating in the tournament placed including Tiernan Poling (4th at 126), Cody Baxter (2nd at 160), Kouper McQuigg (4th at 170), and Luin Norris (1st at 195). Aaron White and Perla Yanez each wrestled two matches at 106 for the Indians.

Sedgwick County/Fleming won the team championship with 152 points. Wray placed 2nd with 130.5. Other team results were:  3rd - Limon 91.5, 4th - Yuma 65.5, 5th - Crowley County 74, 6th - Stratton 65, 7th - Merino 56, 8th - St. Francis 55, 9th - Holyoke 53, 10th - Akron 46, and 11th - Highlands Ranch 24.

Individual results for St. Francis wrestlers in the tournament are listed below.

106 - Aaron White (1-6) scored 0.00 team points.
    Quarterfinal - Anthony Rojo (Holyoke High School) 3-3 won by decision over Aaron White 1-6 (Dec 12-5)
    Cons. Round 1 - Alec Holtorf (Yuma High School) 8-6 won by fall over Aaron White 1-6 (Fall 4:25)

106 - Perla Yanez (0-6)
    Quarterfinal - Jessica Mosqueda (Holyoke High School) 2-7 won by fall over Perla Yanez 0-6 (Fall 0:33)
    Cons. Round 1 - Caden Lone (Highlands Ranch High School) 7-5 won by fall over Perla Yanez 0-6 (Fall 3:28)

126 - Tiernan Poling (6-6) placed 4th and scored 11.00 team points.
    Quarterfinal - Tiernan Poling 6-6 won by fall over Josh Morris (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 1-6 (Fall 2:19)
    Semifinal - Jesus Trejo (Holyoke High School) 9-3 won by fall over Tiernan Poling 6-6 (Fall 1:10)
    Cons. Semi - Tiernan Poling 6-6 won by fall over Colton Franklin (Highlands Ranch High School) 5-9 (Fall 2:35)
    3rd Place Match - Bradyn Tacha (Limon Jr-Sr High School) 4-5 won by fall over Tiernan Poling 6-6 (Fall 3:01)

160 - Cody Baxter (6-5) placed 2nd and scored 18.00 team points.
    Quarterfinal - Cody Baxter 6-5 won by fall over Max Quint (Merino Jr/Sr High School) 2-8 (Fall 1:10)
    Semifinal - Cody Baxter 6-5 won by fall over Wyatt Buccelli (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 9-6 (Fall 2:31)
    1st Place Match - Emmanuel Huerta (Wray High School) 9-2 won by fall over Cody Baxter 6-5 (Fall 1:40)

170 - Kouper McQuigg (5-6) placed 4th and scored 10.00 team points.
    Quarterfinal - Layne Green (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 14-4 won by decision over Kouper McQuigg 5-6 (Dec 10-7)
    Cons. Round 1 - Kouper McQuigg (St. Francis High School) 5-6 won by fall over Carson Reese 0-2 (Fall 2:46)
    Cons. Semi - Kouper McQuigg 5-6 won by disqualification over Carlos Tarin (Wray High School) 7-3 (DQ)
    3rd Place Match - Layne Green (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 14-4 won by fall over Kouper McQuigg 5-6 (Fall 1:44)

195 - Luin Norris (4-3) placed 1st and scored 16.00 team points.
    Round 1 - Luin Norris 4-3 won by fall over Travis Sellers (Crowley County High School) 2-9 (Fall 1:13)
    Round 2 - Luin Norris 4-3 won by fall over Jayce Reser (Wray High School) 8-5 (Fall 2:23)
    Round 3 - Dustin Poss (Akron High School) 5-1 won by fall over Luin Norris 4-3 (Fall 5:31)
    Round 5 - Luin Norris 4-3 won by fall over Antoni Martinez (Holyoke High School) 4-7 (Fall 2:29)

The Indians will have their next competition on January 7, 2017, when they will compete in the Norton Invitational.

Coach Dylan Loyd submitted the following information.

Coach’s Awards:

Most Exciting Match:  Cody Baxter pinning Buccelli of Sedgwick County in the semi-final round to advance to the finals

Coach’s Award:  Cody Baxter

Practice Wrestler:  Trayton Doyle

Key Match Award:  Luin Norris pinning Martinez of Holyoke to guarantee the 195-lb. championship

Most Outstanding Wrestler:  The St. Francis coaching staff has selected Luin Norris as the wrestler of the week. Luin finished the day with the 195-lb. championship.  All three of Luin’s victories came by fall.

Coach’s Comments:  "This past weekend we fought the weather and made our way up to Wray, Colorado, to compete in the Bob Smith/Wray Invitational. We have competed in this tournament for a number of years and is one that I enjoy ending our “pre-season” on. The first part of our schedule is pretty front heavy with Colorado competition. We like to wrestle and compete against schools that we typically will not see as the season progresses. This season is pretty short and these guys have already had to deal with some adversity but, I am proud to see how they have all handled it. We had some matches this weekend that I know we would love to have back, but these kids know right now we are building and as the season goes they will keep getting better and better. 

We will practice this week and then these guys will get some time off and celebrate Jesus’s birth with their families and friends. I love this group; they understand the big picture and what life is truly about. We are going to have a fun year, and they will all be ready once the new year rolls around. We have to get some kids healthy and keep working hard and keep having fun.

Individually, Aaron White had a tough draw but, he battled. Aaron doesn’t have a whole lot of experience right now but, he will end up being a good one for our program because of his attitude and how he attacks every day. He is getting things figured out and knows the things he needs to work on but, he has the proper attitude to get those things done. He wants to get better every day and he has. I look forward to watching him as the season moves forward. Perla Yanez also had a pretty tough day, but she continues to battle. Right now, her biggest battle is she’s still trying to figure out what type of wrestler she is. She’s still a little passive in matches and unsure of herself but, the more experience she gets the confidence she will have. She’s a great kid and I’m glad she made the decision to be a part of our wrestling family. Tiernan Poling has come a long way just in the past year. A year ago, it took three tournaments until he won his first high school varsity match. You fast forward a year and here he is; he’s placed in two of the first three tournaments, he’s down to a weight class that fits him well and he really hasn’t reached his potential yet, which is good. I look at Tiernan as a kid who has a real shot at having lot of success not only this season but, the post season as well. He’s another one who is still figuring out the type of wrestler he wants to be, but I have a lot of confidence in him. Cody Baxter really had himself a weekend that he needed. He was very dominant all day and even in his finals match he was dictating that match and just got caught in a bad position but, it’s one of those things you just learn from and move forward. This kid has ability that really doesn’t come around very often. I think he is starting to figure out how good he is, he’s still a little unsure at times and questions his ability, but when he knows how good he is this kid will light up a scoreboard. Kouper McQuigg really has stepped up into a leadership role and I’m very proud of him. He leads by example; you know every day what you are going to get from him and that is his very best. He has really come a long way with his wrestling and I say it time and time again he just has an intensity and fire that a lot of kids just cannot match. He still has some things he needs to work on from a technique stand point but, the season is young and I have all the faith in the world that he will get there. Luin Norris had a great weekend. This is his first high school varsity tournament in which he has won and seeing him stand on top of the podium and seeing that smile beam is what coaching is all about. He came into the program as a freshman very green and it’s been a lot of fun watching him grow as a wrestler and as a person. There are obviously things that he needs to continue to work on and clean up but, you know the number one thing in this sport is confidence. That belief in yourself and your ability trumps everything in this sport and that’s what makes this sport great, and he is starting to get that.

Our pre-season is now done, right now these kids will get a couple of weeks off from competition. This break comes at a good time for us. Anytime you can spend time with family and celebrate the pure joys in life it’s always good. As we go into break I just want to continue to thank our alumni and wrestling fans who support this group. From our wrestling family to yours I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas!! Enjoy this time with family and be thankful for all of our blessings."